Coeur d'Alene man charged under law aimed at AI-generated child sexual abuse material

COEUR d’ALENE — A Coeur d’Alene man is the first to be charged under Idaho’s new law aimed at AI-generated images of child sexual abuse.

Philip J. Lo, 30, of Coeur d’Alene, is charged with seven counts of sexual exploitation of a child by possession of sexually exploitative material, as well as three counts of possessing visual representations of the sexual abuse of children, all felonies. 

The Internet Crimes Against Children Unit began investigating Lo after “undercover computers received over 200 downloads of suspected child sexual exploitation” from an IP address later confirmed to be associated with Lo’s home address in Coeur d’Alene. The files included videos of infants and toddlers being sexually abused, according to court records. 

Police obtained a search warrant for Lo’s home and vehicle July 9 and served the warrant July 10. 

When interviewed by police Wednesday, Lo allegedly admitted to downloading child sexual abuse material. Police arrested Lo and booked him into jail. 

In addition to photos and videos of children being sexually abused, Lo also allegedly possessed multiple “anime/cartoon” images depicting nude child characters. 

This year, a new section of code was added to state law regarding visual representations of child sexual abuse created using generative AI or machine learning. 

The new statutory language states in part that a person commits a felony “if he knowingly ... possesses or accesses a visual depiction, including a video or image created using generative AI or machine learning, that depicts a child engaging in explicit sexual conduct and is obscene.” 

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador said Friday that Lo’s arrest is the first under the updated law, which went into effect July 1. 

“I’m very proud of the hard work being done by our ICAC investigators and those agencies and ICAC partners that are committed to protecting kids in our community,” Labrador said in a news release. “This will be the first case prosecuted under Idaho’s new law that targets AI-generated, animated and other obscene images of child sexual abuse. The people who create and share these images, AI or otherwise, represent a profound threat to the safety and well-being of children across our state.”

First District Judge Anna Eckhart ordered that Lo be held on $200,000 bail.